UNCA named a “Best Value College” by Princeton Review

Press Release

University of North Carolina Asheville

For the eighth year in a row, UNC Asheville was selected as one of the “Best Value” public colleges in the nation by The Princeton Review. Best Value Colleges: 2014 Edition, profiling the top 75 public colleges and top 75 private colleges, was published today; the rankings were also reported in today’s edition of USA Today.

UNC Asheville is a “school that promotes the growth of its students with an emphasis on a personal approach to undergraduate education,” said a student quoted in the Best Value Colleges guidebook. Students surveyed said the “opportunity for undergraduate research on campus is immense, and in any department.” UNC Asheville’s smaller class sizes make for “more diverse interactions and more vibrant class discussions,” according to students surveyed by The Princeton Review.

The Princeton Review noted that the availability of many forms of financial aid can lower UNC Asheville’s “already low in-state tuition … More than half of students receive some form of aid. In the past year, 79 percent of students’ financial need was met. Additionally, the university’s prestigious merit-based scholarship, the Laurels Scholarship, also provides a variety of awards, including full tuition and fees. The scholarship, which is funded by the generosity of donors, is awarded to entering freshmen who demonstrate high academic achievements.”

The Princeton Review selected the top 150 institutions from among a larger pool of 650 colleges selected for academic excellence. Its rankings are based on institutional data from some 2,000 undergraduate institutions, surveys of university administrators and students concerning academics, cost and financial aid.

The Princeton Review’s assessment of UNC Asheville echoes many other prominent college rankings. In September, UNC Asheville was ranked seventh in the nation among public liberal arts colleges by U.S. News & World Report, which also listed the university among those where students graduate with the least amount of debt. UNC Asheville also received praise for value and quality by Kiplinger’s Personal Finance and Forbes magazine, and the Fiske Guide to Colleges called UNC Asheville “one of the best education bargains in the country.”

For more information, visit http://www.unca.edu/about/facts-and-figures/rankings.